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Whether due to the shutdown or because of distance, those of us lucky enough to still have our grandmothers around, haven’t seen them in person for at least a couple of months. Suffice it to say, we miss them—but probably not as much as Jelisse Silva, who created an entire Instagram account to honor hers. Viejas of South Florida (which translates to old ladies of South Florida) celebrates the matriarchs of Miami in all of their unapologetic glory. “I was inspired by my grandma to create a place where I could commemorate and memorialize the different generations of women who have been a part of the fabric of South Florida before us,” says Silva, who at the time worked at a photography museum in Los Angeles. “I was feeling homesick and missed my grandmother a lot.”
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She launched the account in 2018 and populates it with a curated collection of user submissions (she loves reading the stories people send) and historical photos she culled from state archives and libraries in the area. She also scours social media for images and as well as works by photographers working in the area. “I am continually researching different photographers who have dedicated a portion of their careers to photographing the elderly in South Florida,” says Silva. While none of the photos are hers, the captions are totally original and deliberately written to read like something you’d find in the present day. “I want to help the viewer connect to the image and bring the image to modern time, while still being able to highlight the past,” she says.
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The array of black-and-white images and colorful snapshots exhibit all types of geriatric ladies. For Silva, it’s important to showcase diversity. “I enjoy images with subjects who are culturally diverse because I’ve found that there is a lack of non-white representation in some historical archives,” she says. On Viejas, you’ll see a sassy glam-ma rocking a monochromatic getup on a street corner in Miami Beach. The fabulously accessorized bubbie serving looks at the park, and the disco diva in a lamé coverup taking a break from tanning on her rooftop. And of course, so many gossipping bitties and retirees exploring South Beach at a time when the only people living there were old folks.
Our favorites are the adorable abuelas doing Miami things, like swimming at Venetian Pool and picking mangos in the yard. Being in the throes of mango season right now, we can’t help but miss our own fruit-slinging abuela even more.
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